number 13 rio tinto
rising from the sierra moreno mountains in southwestern spain the rio tinto owns
a distinctive red and orange color due to a unique chemical makeup for over 5 000 years the river has
been the source of all mining including gold silver and copper extracted near its banks
the reddish hue maintained for a 30 mile long stretch has to do with an extremely high content
of iron and heavy metals acid drainage from the mining dissolves heavy metals in the water
it's partly the reason why the river is extremely acidic
and a ruthless environment for most life forms aside from microorganisms called extremophiles
which thrive in the harshest habitats on earth nothing lives in the rio tinto in
fact scientists are studying it to determine how life may develop on mars number 12 yellow river
sometimes called the river of sorrow the yellow river is prone to floods that wipe out
everything in their path ever since the 6th century bc the river has changed course 26
times millions of people have died in over 1500 disastrous floods the core of the yellow
river's destructive powers is the large amount of silt it carries as a result of soil erosion
there's so much sediment that the yellow river sometimes looks like a flowing mudslide when
its levees fail which happens with some regularity the countryside is deeply affected number 11 kern
the kern river sometimes called killer kern is a dangerous river in the state of california
its violent flow and brutal drops are inescapable without the proper equipment one expert argued
confidently that even michael phelps the most decorated olympic swimmer in history
would be powerless against his currents every section of the river is littered with rocks
branches and other hazards since 1968 and up until may of 2020 the killer kern has claimed at least
302 lives most of the victims were recreational users who'd entered the water without a life vest
and drowned as they were taken by the river's powerful currents number 10 congo known as the
heart of darkness the congo river is a force to be respected for anyone who wants to take the fastest
route to the core of africa its ninth in length but second in water volume only to the amazon
the congo is however the world's deepest river at a staggering 720 feet this means that it would
completely cover the washington monument if the structure was to be placed inside it's too deep
even for light to fully penetrate the congo's basin is characterized by a lush jungle
environment it's inhabited by dangerous creatures but also hunter-gatherer groups often collectively
referred to as pygmies the river is home to nile crocodiles but also the giant tiger fish
a sharp tooth carnivorous predator that can weigh well over 100 pounds an additional danger of the
congo river comes in the form of violent waters known as the inga rapids it wasn't until the early
2010s that adventurer steve fisher and his team successfully kayaked the first descent of the
rapids fisher was subsequently named adventurer of the year by national geographic but had two
near-fatal encounters with death while braving the congo's waters number nine brahmaputra
the brahmaputra is an important source of transportation and irrigation in bangladesh
india and tibet for all the advantages it brings to the regions it traverses the river is also
prone to catastrophic floods in the spring when it overflows with snow melting from the himalayas
the floods can reach as much as 20 million 800 000 cubic feet per second these disasters can
result in the loss of many lives livestock crops and houses during the 1998 flood for example
more than 70 percent of bangladesh's land area was inundated and over 31 million people were affected
in the 2004 floods close to 1 million homes were obliterated
while many more were badly damaged several million latrines were washed away thus increasing the risk
of cholera diarrhea and other water-borne health complications number eight tetra
the tetra in the ural mountains is frequently described as the most radioactive river in the
world from 1949 to 1956 a major russian nuclear complex dumped nearly 3 billion
cubic feet of radioactive waste in detection at the time several villages lined the river with
a combined population of about 28 000 residents even though they were eventually evacuated the
tetra was a major source of water for many of them it's believed that within the span of 45 years
almost half a million people were irradiated to some degree or another in fact some of them
were exposed to levels of radiation up to 20 times greater than those sustained
by the victims of the chernobyl disaster number seven alligator rivers three rivers in australia's
northern territory are collectively known as the alligator rivers the name actually stems
from a 19th century misidentification of the crocodilians in its waters the rivers aren't
home to alligators but to salt water crocodiles which are not only larger but also more aggressive
these monstrous reptilians own the strongest bite ever measured in the animal kingdom that
have virtually no adversary in the wild along with nile crocodiles they produce the most
attacks on humans as well as the greatest number of fatalities number six amazon
the same aspects that make the amazon a true wonder of the natural world are also the ones that
make it so deadly no other river even comes close to it in terms of water volume as it discharges an
average 55 million gallons per second as such when the amazon overflows it's catastrophic for the
fields and villages that line its banks flooding is especially violent in conditions of high tide
when the incoming waters of the atlantic are funneled into the amazon delta the resulting wave
is as tall as a giraffe at an estimated 25 feet and travels more than 500 miles inland another
beautiful but deadly aspect of the amazon is the diverse fauna found in its enormous basin some of
these creatures are among the planet's deadliest animals and include black caimans piranhas jaguars
brazilian wandering spiders or anacondas any one of them is fully capable of taking a human life
number five ganges flowing through india and bangladesh the ganges is regarded as a sacred
river in hinduism a link between the earth and the heaven that purifies those who bathe in it
the mythology of the ganges is contrasted by a harsh reality over 400 million people
that live close to the river have contributed to elevated levels of contamination in some areas the
concentration of fecal coliform bacteria from human waste is more than 100 times the limit
imposed by the indian government varanasi a city visited by numerous pilgrims who ritually bathed
in the ganges releases about 53 million gallons of untreated human sewage into the river on a
daily basis contributing to the waster numerous bodies which are left to float freely in the river
as a consequence of religious beliefs the water is thus contaminated and affects millions who
rely on the ganges for washing bathing and cooking it's been theorized that 80 percent of all health
problems in india and up to a third of deaths stem from water-borne illnesses number four potomac
if you enter the river you will die this is the message that officials have attached to one
stretch of the potomac river in the northeastern us a 14 mile long portion the potomac river gorge
is marked by peril it features cascading rapids and several 20-foot waterfalls in its great falls
region the potomac suddenly narrows from about a thousand feet to as little as 60 feet as the water
rushes through the gorge the strongest currents are actually underwater fatally trapping anyone
who gets caught in them by some estimates the potomac river claims six lives each year
number three zambezi the zambezi stretching for almost 1600 miles in northwestern africa is one of
the most dangerous rivers in the world due to its relentless rapids and ferocious wildlife perhaps
its most famous feature is victoria falls which at over 5600 feet wide
is one of the largest waterfalls in the world at its maximum height of 355 feet
going over the edge would result in a greater drop than from atop the statue of liberty even if
the fall itself isn't deadly whoever is unlucky enough to go over its edge will face turbulent
waters the stretch following the waterfall is said to have the greatest concentration
of class 5 white water rapids the swirling waves also hide jagged stones and huge trenches
the wildlife in the zambezi is terrifying nile crocodiles lurk in his water waiting to snatch
their victims from the riverbanks hippos creatures that are notoriously aggressive
are abundant in the zambezi and will even attack boats bull sharks are also known
to travel up the river to such an extent that they're sometimes referred to as zambezi sharks
today's topic was requested by jennifer k luckett if you have any other topics you'd
like to learn about subscribe and let us know in the comments section below number two citarium
indonesia's satorium river is in a deplorable state and swimming in its waters along some
stretches can be deadly yet it's not by natural occurrence that this river has become so dangerous
the citarium is often characterized as the world's most polluted river there are areas in which
the water is barely visible among the flowing garbage lead mercury arsenic and other deadly
toxins are present in the river as a consequence of pollution from over two thousand industries
according to the environmentalist fighting for the cleanup of the satarium river the leading
contaminator is the country's textile industry they've noted around 20 000 tons of waste and over
340 000 tons of wastewater disposed by the industry into the river on a daily basis
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today to be one of the first to spread the word number one wharf a stretch of the river wharf in
yorkshire england is remarkably dangerous and some even believe it to have a fatality rate of 100
percent called the strid the portion of the river is narrow enough to be covered in a single stride
some daredevils choose to jump over it but those unlucky enough to fall in the water are doomed
beneath the seemingly placid surface of the street lies a dangerous combination of jagged rocks
and aggressive undercurrents it's a spot where the river almost turns on its side
carving out passages and tunnels hundreds of lives were claimed by the strid
including that of a small child in 2010 thanks for watching would you rather swim across the
citarian river or try to escape being stuck in quicksand let us know in the comments section
below